Meet our newest pastor

Eric Waters. Here's his first sermon at the X-Alt service at Lytham Rd., UALC (Upper Arlington Lutheran Church which has 3 campuses) and it's on God's wrath. http://tech.ualc.org/mp3/audio/080217EWLRX.mp3 Listen carefully as he reads God's word to the Romans. He's not reading. He speaks the scripture from memory, and it makes a huge difference as you watch him, because he's also performing it with facial expression and hand movements. But before you get the good news, you need the bad news. So it's a good introduction not only to him, but to the gospel. His speech pattern, you'll notice, is not midwestern--he's come to us from Fargo, ND but grew up in New York state. However, he was a Russian major in college, worked for awhile in Siberia, and I think I detect that in the up and down, the flow, the staccato. See what you think.

Isn't this backwards?

According to a story at The Kept Up Librarian

The University of Oklahoma is hoping to keep more high-achieving upperclassmen living on campus by giving them cash rebates for good grades. President David Boren said OU would be the first in the Big 12 to reward on-campus students for high grade-point averages. The initiative, called the OU Academic Success Rebate Program, will reward upper-class and graduate students living in OU Traditions Square or the residence halls beginning this fall. Read more at:
http://newsok.com/article/3204456/1202968564

I thought you got the best results by rewarding the low achievers, taking the money from the high achievers by raising their fees and driving them off campus, or better yet, out of state. That's how the Hillabama Democrats would do it.

The Democrats and taxing the rich

The campaign ads display Hillabama pulling out all the old, old class rhetoric from the 60s--I guess they don't realize all those spoiled, struggling boomers the lefties romanced back then are now well-heeled 60 year olds. They were in control of Congress for so many years, I wonder why all of society's problems weren't fixed? Yes, they will stop those tax breaks for the rich. Drum roll. Women faint. Men swoon. Businesses and corporations leave for friendlier climes.

The Democrats created the Alternative Minimum Tax in 1969, but due to bipartisan neglect neither party has fixed it. It's a mess of unintended consequences--known as the "stealth tax." It was originally set up to punish 19,000 very successful, wealthy Americans who weren't paying taxes (millions at the bottom don't pay taxes because people at the top pay for them, but that's OK--that's fair). The AMT was not set up to account for inflation, so now it scams many who are not even close to wealthy by today's standards, and if you're subject to it, you can't deduct your state and local taxes. The AMT wasn't even set up to get revenue--it was some bureaucrat's idea of "fair," and it never even achieved that! It's a boon for the tax preparers, though; that's one industry our government constantly helps out--compliance costs the US taxpayer millions and millions and many hours that could be used productively in something else. Now with the bipartisan ennui, they are raking in so much money, they're afraid to drop it, so they make temporary fixes and patches. Twenty six million Americans will be snagged by the AMT for 2008 according to today's paper*, up from 4 million for 2007 and 2006.

And how about that wonderful, bipartisan stimulus package? Those who contribute the most to the economy and pay the most taxes will get nothing back. The $112 billion in "stimulus" is phased out for individuals paying taxes on incomes over $75,000, or jointly on $150,000. How's that for fair?

Nor will there be "debt relief" for those who were sensible and played by the sound rules of 20% down, fixed rate mortgages, and a budgeted percentage of their income for housing. They'll be bailing out the neighbors who went for no money down, false documents and the adjusted rates, which if they had read the contract, always go up. They have no choice but to send more money to Washington, because if they don't, the neighborhood will go. What Suckers! But Hillabama to the rescue. They'll fix it--by making the honest guy pay.

*Although I don't have a link to the article I read on the AMT, here is one very similar.

obama

Three Word Wednesday

Bone has posted for 3WW

Punch
T-shirt
Unravel

for us to play with this week. Before I checked the clues, I was sorting laundry, and again thinking about how I could turn the old t-shirts from VBS, traveling, library conferences and organizations into a quilt. My mom used to cut t-shirts into strips and crochet the fabric into rugs, but quilting them saves the event or organization, and thus your memories. I've got San Antonio, Seattle and Shedd's Museum. I've got a "I heart my library," and Walk with Majors. I've got a Lakeside Ohio tour of my husband's projects. I've got dogs, horses and kitties. So here's my little poem. The photo is from Goose tracks and she will quilt t-shirts supplied by you for a fee, if you're not crafty or don't have the time.

Punch up the memories,
unravel the past,
cut up those t-shirts,
the first and the last

Arrange the design
and a contrasting thread,
make a new coverlet
to place on the bed.

Men's fashion

At the coffee shop this morning I consulted with one of the regulars, a man who formerly managed a men's store, about this photo. I'm not up on floral ties--at least not since I used to make neckties for my husband back in the early 1970s. And I think he took a few resembling this with him on the Haiti mission and left them there.

This photo is in the March 2008 Architectural Digest in a double page layout featuring a yellow sports car in front of a stone mansion (or it could be that stone house in Attica, Ohio). This photo nips off the top of the model's head a little. My consultant shook his head and said, "No, blue with a small print would work." I went all through the Lauren web page looking for this photo, finding instead the same model in the same suit with a blue tie. Finally, I located it in a style guide. The model has a nose like a hockey player, and that makes his face interesting and less effeminate. The slickered hair and large lapels give him a sense of history--1930s or 40s. He's the most featured model at that web site. And I don't think the point of the right lapel sticking up above the shoulder line is an oversight. . . it seems to be purposeful to draw your eye there to linger for awhile. And yet, the leaf of the flower is perfectly centered in the knot of the tie. The model's eyes repeat the color scheme and the horizontal white chair back peeking over his left shoulder is repeated in the white hanky.

A man dressed like this . . .well, anyway, it is a very purposeful, artistic composition.

House cleaning tips

I'm now officially an S.O.B. Yes, I've joined the State of Ohio Blogger Alliance. I looked through a few of the sites, read some good ones and decided to join. I had a little trouble with the code, but you can find it down the left side, somewhere below medical and before the 50+ folks.

Today I ran clear water through my little 3 cup coffee maker. I always go out for coffee--in fact, I'm known for my bad coffee. But I made coffee for my dinner party Friday night and this morning for my husband (I usually bring it home, but forgot). Everyone commented on how good the coffee was. Now that I've cleaned the pot, I've probably removed whatever was causing that.

The clothes my husband brought home from the Haiti mission trip were really dirty. He unpacked in the laundry room and put everything in sorted piles, and then cleaned the suitcases. Haiti is very dusty and dirty because over the years the people have cut down all the trees for fuel and cooking. When I went down to load the laundry this morning, I discovered the cat had thrown up a hair ball and last night's supper in the shirt pile. Oh well, saved the carpet.

I heard a laundry tip on the radio a few months ago that really seems to work. Wash your whites with bleach in COLD water instead of hot. The bleach works more effectively. I was skeptical, but I think I'm a believer.

Omama. I have change, hope and a future.

The future of hope

In the Baker's Dictionary of Christian Ethics, (1973) Hope is defined as

"the conviction that God will judge the evil of the world and create a new heaven and a new earth with righteousness. The Old Testament prophets tell us that the whole of history is divinely ordered, and interpreted even the most hopeless hours in the light of the coming victory of God. A new age will replace the present one and end all woe and sin."

I suspect that isn't the direction Barry and Mama Obama are taking us.

"The New Testament takes up the theme of the Old Testament idea, but elucidates, sharpens, and specifies it at the same time."

Is this where Obama comes in?

"Jesus through his life, suffering, death, and resurrection laid the basis for that final intervention of God in history and human experience. Christian hope is concerned with the future of every human being, but it does not end there. The overarching concern encompasses the new humanity or Christ's church."

So the hope is the Kingdom of God? Seems to be some disagreement even among Christians about "what is our hope?"

"The theologians of hope want to rewrite theology in terms of categories of change--a total restructuring takes place where God is seen as part of the changing process."

Hmm. Did this guy write Obama's theme speeches? Hope, future, change? This might be the most religious guy we've ever had running for the White House! Oh, wait.

"As promised in the Scriptures, [hope is] demonstrated in the resurrection of God's Son, and experienced by Christians in the past and present."

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly trust in Jesus’ Name.

On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

When darkness seems to hide His face,
I rest on His unchanging grace.
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

His oath, His covenant, His blood,
Support me in the whelming flood.
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my Hope and Stay.

On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh may I then in Him be found.
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.

On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

Obama

4645

Cite your sources!

There's a full page ad in the paper today from the State of New York Commissioner of Health addressed to Disney, GE, News Corp., Sony, Time Warner and Viacom.

"The science is clear: exposure to smoking in movies is the single most powerful pro-tobacco influence on children today, accounting for the recruitment of half of all new adolescent smokers."

No one is more anti-tobacco than I am, but for statements like that, I'd like to see some sources. It sounds like big government trying to push aside the influence of parenting, church, school, social network, and the non-Hollywood arts industry. I went on-line and looked at various studies (CDC, BMJ) read through the summaries, then the corrections, then the citations where authors were often citing themselves (bad form), and I even came across one that said that although incidence of smoking in movies was going down, smoking was going up! And yet the letter claims,

"Tobacco imagery delivers nearly 200,000 U.S. adolescents into tobacco addition each year."

I think, if I read correctly, that for a certain percentage of young teens who try smoking, many have seen a movie in the past year where actors were smoking. I don't know how many who try smoking after seeing an R movie (and where are their parents?) have also been taken to concerts, art museums, plays, library story hours, school lyceums, sporting events and school parties. Do they want to buy a hockey stick or a box of watercolors? I hope they've adjusted for other influences. I suspect that the first cigarette needs to be reinforced by some other type of influence--either genetic predisposition, family members who smoke, or peer acceptance or all three. My son, who is trying to stop his 20+ year addiction, says he was hooked after the first cigarette because he liked how it made him feel. Then smoking behavior was reinforced at school, which at that time allowed it on campus. I tried smoking in junior high, and again in college. It didn't do a thing for me, tasted awful and made my clothes and hair stink, plus I had disapproval from friends, so what would be the point? Smoking was probably in every movie I'd ever seen in the 1950s and 60s and when I was in high school, I saw several movies a week. And they really made it look glamorous and fun in those days. Obesity is passing tobacco as a health problem. Especially in childhood. Next: no movies showing restaurants, eating or snacking. No previews announcing food in the lobby. No popcorn allowed.

So guys, if the science is clear, make your citations clear also.

Michelle Obama helps John McCain

Michelle Obama who probably is wealthier and has more education than 90% of the the US population is so distraught about how awful it is to be an American lawyer, educated at Ivy League prestigious universities, married to a Senator, that her speech has really invigorated the right to come out for McCain.

“For the first time in my adult life, I am proud of my country,” she told a Milwaukee crowd, “because it feels like hope is making a comeback.”

If this is the "hope" and the "future" and the "change" that her husband represents, we'd better start looking for the good old days, because this woman is totally self-absorbed, spoiled and stuck-on-stupid. Yes, Michelle, you have convinced me. I'll hold my nose and vote for McCain rather than someone whose knowledge of politics and history extends to the tip of her pretty nose and sound of her mellifluous voice.

I'm beginning to think that both Hillary and Obama need to deep six their spouses until after the election. With supporters like this, they won't need enemies.

Home from Haiti

My husband has returned from a mission trip to Haiti. He loves the people, even though it is a bit of a culture shock going in and coming home. This year he was more prepared, mentally and physically. He worked on some construction projects building covers for medical equipment for the clinic and taught a class in architectural drawing to 12th graders. They loved it, and so did he. These kids are so bright and motivated, he says it is a real pleasure to work with them.

This is a photo of the Ouanaminthe Airport, and he did NOT fly in here (thank goodness!) The team flew into the Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic, and were picked up by our pastor, Dave Mann, in a school bus for a 4.5 ride to the border city of Dajabon. Because the border is closed by the time they get there, they spend the night in a hotel, and continue on in the morning, but it's only about 10 more minutes. They get there in time for church. You can fly from the capital, Port-au-Prince, to the Ouanaminthe airport in about 30 minutes, but it would be about 11 hours (bad roads) by bus, so that's why they fly into Santo Domingo. Both countries are on the same island. The standard of living, the infrastructure, the industry, and the greenery of the countryside are night and day, and they are divided by a river named Massacre.

Please don't squeeze. . .

Meredith Whipple of Columbus, Ohio, had a letter in the paper (USA Today):

"When I see a political leader relying on the Word of God to solve the nation's problems, I begin to question whether he or she has a real strategy in place."

When I see a political leader relying on the Word of God I will be in a state of shock, because I've never seen it. Black or white, Democrat or Republican, male or female, Jew or Gentile, gay or straight, Red or Blue state, fat or thin, Berkeley or Boise, I just have never seen a leader of this nation from zoning board to the White House, rely on the Word of God. Sprinkling a few god words in a speech during campaign season to warm the hearts of the voters doesn't qualify, Ms. Whipple.

Lose 5 lbs. by Easter

10 lbs. by Memorial Day. That was the story in USAToday this morning. So that's 5 weeks, or a pound a week. There were some interesting suggestions--in addition to more veggies and fruit, portion control, etc., which I hope we all know by now.

Put magazines with covers of fit people on your coffee table.

Hang a summer outfit where you can see it.

Decrease or eliminate fruit juice and sugary drinks, as well as alcohol and coffee dessert drinks.

Sit down at the table to eat.

One pound of fat contains about 3,500 calories, so to lose one pound a week, you should eat 500 fewer calories each day. That probably means my husband will need to finish the chocolate peanut butter pie that's in the frig.

Colorful food tend to be more nutrient dense--blueberries, broccoli, peppers, etc. Remember, mother always said to eat all the colors. That's probably not dark chocolate candy, or golden corn chips.

If you drink a glass of water before a meal, you'll feel more full.

Before you go for seconds, wait 10 minutes; your body will probably tell you that you're already full. Of course, in some homes, everyone will have left the kitchen or cleared the table if you wait ten minutes. Everyone is in such a hurry!

Wear a pedometer. 1000 steps is 1/2 mile. 10 flights of stairs is one mile.

Eat real food. Take the word "snack" right out of your vocabulary. Think about it. A snack usually increases your hunger, not decreases it. It's a set up--don't go down that aisle, don't try that recipe. It's a trick. And a billion dollar business.

See www.smallstep.gov for more tips.

Can you define a "living wage?"

Or, how about an "American working family?" These terms are pandering policy pablum. It's like trying to figure out the word, "uninsured." It's nailing Jello to the wall.

Let's begin with two classic cases--both single moms with 2 children. Melanie had a significant other she met in college, but they never married, and he's wandered off the reservation looking for more significance. Her first pregnancy stopped her education, and besides, she liked staying home with cute babies. She doesn't know where the SO is, so there's no child support. She's working at Wendy's for $7.00 an hour--$14,800/year. She's not unhappy; she likes the work--has flexible hours, regular customers she knows by face and order, and can walk to work, although she has a "beater" car. She's a whiz at e-Bay and picks up a little cash by hitting the garage sales on her day off. She's worked at a dry-cleaners but the fumes bothered her, and at Tim Horton's, but the scheduling didn't suit, and has waitressed at family restaurants like Applebee's and Bag of Nails earning more, but she likes the management here. She occasionally dates the men she meets on the other side of the counter.

Then there's Tanika. She's divorced and her husband has decided to find himself in the entertainment world, but borrows more money than he sends. He drinks or smokes what is left after he's paid under the table at various clubs when his group performs. Each time she talks to him, he's just about to land the big break. Tanika's no dummy. She's always been told that education is the key to a better life. With help from her parents and various scholarships, and some state aid, she has finally completed the Kent State program in Library Science. Although she's relieved to have landed a job in the public library of a nice suburb of Columbus for $16.40 an hour in a tight job market, she does have to work some evenings and occasional week-ends, and has no flexibility to trade hours. Also, she's got some whopping school debts to repay, and she's maxed out several credit cards. Her dad keeps her car repaired and running. Her mom invites her and the kids over for dinner often, and babysits when Tanika works evenings and week-ends. The library is so busy, she knows none of the people who pass through. Social life is zilch, nada, nyet and she's too pooped to even take the kids to the pool. Her day off is a school day, so she volunteers at the Lutheran Food Pantry.

As you might have surmised, Melanie is better off than Tanika, plus she could have the satisfaction of knowing she is keeping a small army of government workers busy!

She is eligible for a piece of the Earned Income Tax Credit ($40+ billion), which is a cash supplement to wages of the "working poor," and at her income that's an additional $4,536 a year.

At various times she has received help from Temporary Assistance to Needy Families because of the dead-beat dad thing until her eligibility ran out. Between jobs, she stayed on unemployment benefits as long as she could--one time almost 3 years. Although she much prefers working, she never felt a sitter did as good a job with the kids as she could do herself.

She receives a housing voucher ($16 billion), which is much more pleasant than having to live in "the projects," and although there are others in her complex--actually many--no one seems to notice. In fact, she and Tanika's family don't live far from each other and the kids play together at the pool.

In addition to food stamps, which add about $100 a week to her grocery budget* ($35 billion through USDA), her children are eligible for the National Student Lunch Program, the Breakfast Program, the after school snack program, and the summer lunch program--plus she gets her own meals at Wendy's. In fact, they're all packing on a few extra pounds--no one is going hungry, that's for sure. The NSL and SBP (from the Ohio Department of Education via the USDA) also provide these services to runaways, homeless and migrant children, but Melanie is a pretty stable gal with good values, she's "always paid her own way," so there's not much danger of that. If she runs out towards the end of the month because the cable bill was due, she can get 3 days of food at the Lutheran Food Pantry.

Melanie would have to pay a pretty high co-pay for company health benefits, so she keeps passing on that during sign up periods, but she's eligible for SCHIP (as is Tanika who is making under $40,000 but has never applied**), and it provides some coverage like dental, prescription and special lab work she couldn't get through an employers' health program.

A few months ago Melanie's boyfriend got religion and called her, wanting to do right by her and the children and make it all legal--white dress, church, flowers, etc. But she turned him down. Even if he got a job at another Wendy's their combined income would throw off her eligibility, and financially, her kids would much much worse off. She's happy where she is--who needs to marry?

Melanie and Tanika are fictitious; the programs are not.

*In Ohio a family of three would be eligible for about $100 a week in food stamps, the gross eligibility being $21,600 of family income.

**An October 2007 study found that 68.7 percent of newly uninsured children were in families whose incomes were 200 percent of the federal poverty level or higher.

His money outlived him

I've heard or read the name "John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation" tacked on to many stories, particularly on public radio, but never knew who they were. . . or what an unpleasant, mean old snot John D. was. Here's an interesting story about a "reluctant philanthropist" who set up a foundation, now with assets over $6 billion, who probably didn't have a friend in the world and was disliked even by family members.

He was such a penny pincher, he hired dwarves to work in the low ceiling basement of one of his income properties so as to make use of all the space. And there's more.

Leadership and girls

Last night at dinner we talked about how we would advise a young woman going into our career field. One woman was a lawyer; one an elementary suburban school teacher; and one a high school teacher of special needs students in an urban system. My own advice would be to participate more in committee and leadership opportunities even if you hate it (like me), because for now, that's how you establish a network and climb the ladder (at least in library science).

I noticed that at career journal.com Sue Shellenbarger notes

There's evidence children and teens aren't getting as much practice at leadership as in the past. Only 1.5% of today's young college graduates have ever worked on a political campaign, based on a study of 40,000 recent grads by Robert Zemsky, a University of Pennsylvania professor, and Peterson's, a learning-resource unit of Thomson Corp., Toronto.

With today's huge high schools, the opportunities for young people to practice leadership roles in a small, familiar setting have dwindled. "There can only be one president of the senior class," and with 3,500 kids in a high school, that leaves out a lot of kids, says Barbara Schneider, a University of Chicago professor and author of "The Ambitious Generation."

That surprised me a bit, so I looked back--and the opportunities were there for me, particularly in high school, I just didn't like it. I was in 4-H and performed "demonstrations" even as young as 11 or 12; I was my church youth group (CBYF) president; I attended leadership workshops and seminars offered by my church's district; I was on the student council in high school; I think (but can't actually remember) that other organization I belonged to like band, Pepsters, and yearbook staff, probably had assigned offices. I was a camp counselor, and after high school got on a bus, travelled to California, and worked for a summer in a settlement house situation. I can't imagine that those opportunities aren't still out there, even at large high schools. However, when I got to college, I participated very little in extra curricular activities. For one thing, the competition had ratcheted up! To be an officer, or even a committee member meant long hours, and much more competition, and I just hated anything competitive. I suspect that like grades, there is today much more competition for positions of leadership. No, I have no one but myself to blame for not becoming a leader--I didn't like it. I much preferred the one-on-one with the students, the small group teaching, getting into research and publication, and supervising a staff of one or two people.

Every place of employment has opportunities for networking, and for lack of a better word, empire building. Yes, everything is political. Get over it! That usually means paying your dues with committee work or putting in time on task forces. Breathe deep. Exhale. Pray for direction. Sign up. Feel the power.

Kiss a librarian, hug a book?

Adoptees begin with Chapter 2

This was Rapper DMC's testimony in January about the need for changes in the the New Jersey law that prevents adult adoptees from access to their original birth certificate. Two days ago the USAToday featured a story about a Maine Senator who was instrumental in getting her state's laws changed, and then discovered that two of her nephews were serving in the state legislature--and each had been on opposite sides of the issue. After she learned the names and town of her birth parents she discovered that she was born when they were near 50 and she had been placed for adoption--they were the grandparents of men she was serving with.

Ohio's records are still closed, but that will eventually fall, as more and more states bring these archaic and counter productive laws in line with modern thinking about civil rights. No one can deny a Native American his right to know his parental and tribal heritage, but for people of African American or European or Hispanic background, it is considered just fine to slam the door on their access to medical and personal history. Who knows if it was just the current thinking of social workers, or the workings of legislators representing men who didn't want to be found. I tend to follow the money.

No one can force a birth parent or adult offspring to meet, socialize and establish a relationship regardless of a law or adoption registry. My grandmother's great grand daughter lives on the east side of Columbus. Although we share a common heritage, exchange Christmas cards, were born in the same state, and know many people in common, we do not get together.

Open records IS NOT open adoption--these are two entirely different issues. Open records is about adults. Open adoption is about children. I think the jury is still out on the long term affects of open adoptions, but for open records, there can be no question in my mind that adults should have full rights to accurate and complete records, if they exist.

For the Records: Restoring a legal right for adult adoptees (November 2007)

My Valentine Dinner Party

Last night I hosted a dinner for three friends and I just finished the wonderful Godiva chocolates one brought as a hostess gift. Yum! I served broccoli soup, a boneless pork roast with a BBQ sauce, potato salad, baked butternut squash, fresh fruit bowl (blue berries, cantaloupe, grapes, pineapple and strawberries), wheat rolls, and peanut butter chocolate pie. To go with my color theme I made a drink of 1/3 pineapple juice mixed with red raspberry sugar-free soda. This was my first time to use the bowls I bought in July to go with my good china. My china is Syracuse, Countess pattern, purchased in the 1960s and now discontinued, with bowls going for about $50-60 on e-bay. I found an almost-match at the Discovery Shop of King's Court, Wedding Band pattern, for $4 each. At night, under the dining room light, I couldn't see any difference, but in the daylight, you can see a very slight color difference. Anyway, I was very pleased with my find, and finally being able to serve a soup with dinner!

My guests stayed until after 10 p.m., and we talked of many things--our faith, our careers, laws and regulations (usually pertaining to our specialties), and "past lives." One topic was, "what advice would you give a young woman, post-college, just beginning in your career field." It was a great evening. Every woman should have a "ladies only" dinner at least once--we even dressed up.

Great one-liners

Elizabeth Wurtzel, a democrat who says she hasn't decided yet, got off some great one-liners in today's WSJ article, "Hillary Agonistes."

In less time than it takes to get through a single session of psychotherapy, Mr. Obama can cure me--an open mind, a free spirit, a loving heart--even thin thighs.

No one with a job takes advice from someone with a chef."

". . . first flush of Obamarama. . ."

"If candidates were reading material, Obama would be pornography--he's got everyone aroused."

"Once upon a life time ago, Hillary clinton could have been Barack Obama."

"She's been called the anti-Christ, but right now she's the anti-Obama."

"Mr. Obama is what the future looks like--a biracial child of divorce, abandoned by his father, a party hardy Harvard Law School graduate."

"One of these years Hillary is going to the White House--if she has to take hostages she'll do it--she may even cry."

Now that's writing.

Friday Family Photo--Big Hair

Remember the big hair of the 80s? This photo was probably taken on Easter, 1988, when we all had hair--lots of it. To balance the load on our head, we women had to wear huge floral prints with even bigger shoulder pads!



Thirty years ago